Warner Bros. almost replaced Bruce Lee as Enter the Dragon’s lead character. For the martial arts legend, the 1973 film was his long-awaited opportunity to become a superstar in the United States. Enter the Dragon was ultimately his first and only starring role in a Hollywood movie.
Lee had tried for years to get his big break in America. He did succeed in making an impression on audiences as martial arts expert Kato in ABC’s The Green Hornet show, but it wasn’t enough to get the attention he had wanted from Hollywood directors and producers. After numerous efforts to become a leading man in Hollywood failed to pan out, Lee tried his hand in the Hong Kong kung fu movie industry and was instantly launched to stardom with Golden Harvest’s The Big Boss. Thanks to the success he had achieved in Hong Kong, Lee eventually achieved his dream and signed a contract with Warner Bros. to star in Enter the Dragon, which was the movie that posthumously made him a household name.
Though Lee was always Warner Bros.’ first choice to play Enter the Dragon’s main character, there was a point in the movie’s development when it looked like Lee would have to be replaced. In multiple interviews, Enter the Dragon producer Fred Weintraub has discussed the challenges Warner Bros. had in getting the movie to happen, one of which being getting Lee to take the part. To do that, Golden Harvest founder Raymond Chow had to be convinced to co-finance the film. After that issue was resolved, another obstacle emerged, which was the list of conditions Lee had about creative control over Enter the Dragon. This caused some discussions about recasting Lee.
According to Bruce Lee: A Life by Matthew Polly, Weintraub said that the level of oversight that Lee expected to receive was far beyond what Warner Bros. was willing to allow. He wanted complete control over the fight choreography, script approval, and the title to be changed from Blood and Steel to Enter the Dragon. Weintraub says that the level of authority Lee was seeking was on par with a director or a producer, and that was not something Warner Bros. was willing to give an actor. Weintraub claimed that some of the “higher-ups” at the studio wanted a new actor to play the lead since they were having so much trouble reaching a final agreement with Lee.
Though Weintraub was opposed to the recasting option, finding a new star almost became necessary. Polly wrote in his book that Lee nearly left the Los Angeles airport without a signed contract, but Warner Bros. made a few last-minute concessions and a new contract was written up. Compromises were made by both sides, which included the movie being retitled Enter the Dragon, but not the script approval Lee had initially demanded. If Warner Bros. didn’t take these extra steps to keep Bruce Lee on board, the actor likely would have continued making Hong Kong movies and the studio’s first kung fu film would have been completely different from the martial arts masterpiece it’s known to be today.